Thursday, 13 August 2015

Tour at 17:00

Report from Eldey: This was the tour with the best weather as it really calmed down from the earlier tours that day. This would turn out to be the best tour of the day not just because of the weather though as the tour was dominated by two spectacular humpback whales that we got to spend a great amount of time with. The first was very exciting as it was a new whale that we haven´t encountered before, it looked unique with many large white patches and a solid white tail. This whale was feeding at the surface of the water in the most impressive ways, constantly throwing its body out of the water with a mouth wide open for us to see right inside the whale as we got a first hand lesson in whale biology. This whale proved a little challenge as it was constantly moving from patch of fish to patch of fish, meaning we had to predict where it would next surface. This only added to the excitement as we were always kept in suspense. We decided to see a second humpback once we learned where it was and were delighted to be treated to acrobatic display of fluke slapping and raising. This was a perfect example of what makes these animals so coveted and why this summer has been one this company will never forget.

- Jack Ball

Tour at 13:00

Report from Eldey: The wind and swell were still very high so we had a real adventure on our hands this afternoon. Though in the morning we did not see a whale we had heard reports from other boats about their success with whales in another area so we immediately sailed there. Once we reached the area we found a humpback whale waiting for us! This was the whale we had seen many times recently that it currently entangled in a fishing net, thankfully it showed no restriction in its movement as it was really putting on a display for us. The whale was breaching, slapping its head and slapping its pectoral fins countless times. This was extraordinary behaviour from this whale which wasn´t alone! Out of nowhere a minke whale appeared close to us. It must have been jealous of the attention we gave this humpback, this was a very memorable tour with some incredible sightings.

- Jack Ball

Tour at 09:00

Report from Eldey: On this rather windy morning the swell was still quiet high after yesterday's storm, which is why we were fortunate to go travel into the bay with our largest boat Eldey, which was surprisingly calm. While we were searching for cetaceans we were surprised by a group of jumping white- beaked dolphins in the distance. As we reached those animals we found them surfing the waves, enjoying and playing around in the high swell. At some point they even came close to the boat. After a short encounter we decided on looking for larger species, so we continued to travel west. Unfortunately no animals were found in an area where we had most encounters the days before. On our way back to the harbour we sighted back- slapping dolphins. As fast as they appeared they were gone again, so we continued our ride back home. Estimating 1-2 different pods of white- beaked dolphins with 4-8 individuals.

- Michaela Buchbauer

Birds seen on todays tour include: kittiwakes, puffins, eider ducks, cormorants, manx shearwaters, arctic skuas, arctic terns, northern fulmars, northern gannets, common guillemots, lesser and greater black-backed gulls.